Editorial: Heard in Hampton

Citizens should tell City Council: Don't marginalize any of our representatives

January 10, 2011

If Hampton residents don't get themselves in gear, quickly, the City Council may deliver a blow to representative democracy. At its afternoon and evening meetings on Wednesday, Jan. 12, the council will take up the seemingly innocuous matter of a policy manual for itself.

Much of it is routine, but some of the contents represent a threat to open government, to citizen participation in their government, and to the ability of all members of the council to represent citizens.

One of the most chilling provisions would shut off the flow of information, so a council member could only get the information the majority wants them to have. It says that if a council member asks for information about city spending, city policy, or research or analysis, among other things, the city manager would send the request to the full council for approval.

Consider what this means: If a majority wants to keep the public from finding out about some expenditure (yes, this happens sometimes), a minority member wouldn't be able to dig it out. If a majority wants to keep the wraps on a project, a decision or a problem, this is how they can do it.

Another proposal would ban council members from issuing press releases "pertaining to the city council or the city" without prior authorization from the council. That is wrong. Any time they want, elected officials must be able to communicate — via press release, billboard or jingle, for that matter. They can't speak for the council or city government, but they can speak for themselves on city issues.

Also troubling, if not unique to Hampton, is the proposed code of conduct for council members. How silly. Does any locality need to tell the adults in charge to do their homework and not break the law? As for the proposed pledge not to be divisive: Some much-needed changes in government only come about because someone is willing to challenge, to go against a flow that is headed in the wrong direction.

Especially oppressive is the provision in Hampton's draft code that the council can "impose sanctions" on members whose conduct it decides doesn't line up with its interpretation of the code. That could include private reprimand, formal censure, loss of seniority or committee assignment or docking a member's travel allowance.

That's absolutely out of line. If there is any censoring to be done, it is the job of citizens, and they have the means — calls and e-mail, speaking before the council, recall and the ballot box. Again, this is a mechanism a majority can use to control, marginalize and punish the minority.

Splits within governing bodies aren't unusual. Sometimes they're benign; sometimes they get ugly. The latter has been too much the case in Hampton, and this is an alarming effort that would help a majority retain its power by neutering those who don't line up.

Every member of council was chosen by citizens to do their business. Every one has the right to be heard, to contribute to and challenge the operation of the city. Every one has not only the right to information but a need for it. Information is the lifeblood of democracy; citizens need it, too, and sometimes they can only get it through their representatives.

Hampton residents recently reminded themselves what citizen involvement can accomplish, when their objections helped derail a plan, hatched in secret, to spend their money on gift cards for city employees. They need to rally again, to tell council members to vote against this proposal (contact information is on the city's website). They need to speak at the Wednesday evening meeting and not allow themselves to be silenced just because they want to voice the same view as other speakers.

They need to make it clear that all their representatives have a voice, and they will not tolerate policies that are crafted to stymie and stifle some of them.